O Heroes had an awesome showing in the community last month for the Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Service on January 17, with almost 70 student athletes volunteering their time to do multiple service projects around town.

The men and women of Track & Field partnered up with lots of the young women from Acrobatics & Tumbling as well as a few others to visit the Arc of Lane County, a non-profit organization that seeks to empower the developmentally disabled people of the county by providing a space that is inclusive and encourages their independence and development. The volunteers completed a list of tasks that included building repairs, cleaning jobs, and painting projects, and the Arc workers said that they were very appreciative of all the hard work the athletes did, which otherwise would’ve taken them ages, they said.

Later in the morning, the entire Lacrosse team first did a stint at the White Bird clinic for homeless and substance abuse support; cleaning and doing maintenance around the facilities, and then later visited the children at the Emerald Valley Boys & Girls club (where the women’s tennis team had already been hanging out for awhile) for some fun games, t-shirt making, and playing some good old basketball.

We are so thankful to all the student-athletes who gave their time that day and every day. We’re also grateful that the athletes here at the UofO are so dedicated to serving the community and helping to continue the proud tradition of service that keeps O Heroes going strong.